Suction-cleaner.



J. G. WALKER.

SUCTION CLEANER.

11121101112101; FILED MAR.18,1911.

1,017,275, Patented Feb. 13, 1912.

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1 Arromhgx J. G. WALKER.

SUCTION CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 18, 1911.

Patented Feb. 13, 1912.

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ATTORNEY m WITNESSES fbmmm JOHN GEORGE WALKER, OF SEWABEN, NEW JERSEY.

SUCTION-CLEANER.

Specification of Letters iatcnt.

Patented Feb. 13, 1912.

Application fil ed March 18, 1911. Serial No. 815,195.

To all whom it may concern:

' Be it known that LJOHN G. WALKER, a citizen of the United States, and resident of the town of Sewaren, county of Middlesex,

and State of New Jersey, have invented cermingling of the-steam with the current of tain new and useful Improvements in Suction-Cleaners, of which the following is a specification.

The cleaner, the subject of my invention is intended to operate in a manner very s1m1- lar to the so called vacuum cleaners and is so constructed that the ordinary flexible tube and nozzle used with domestic cleaners,

portable or stationary, may be used without alteration in conjunction with my device.

Although particularly well adapted for permanent installations I have devlsed means for making. my cleaner a portable cleaner, one that can be transported from place to place and still be always ready for use. I have found that most portable cleaners have in the past been constructed on the pump or diaphragm principle and I have found that because of the lightness and simplicity which it is desirable to obtain, mechanical efliciency has in many instances been sacrificed.

In constructing my device I- have endeavored to overcome the necessity for .rotating or reciprocating mechanical parts, and in producing a cleaner of this general class I have avoided all construction that might be considered in the least complicated, with the result that the invention, the subject of this application may be adopted for use in any of the branches of suction cleaning without fear of injury to the cleaner.

In addition to the improvements in the mechanical construction, there is a eater and more important improvement om a sanitary standpoint. The dust laden air is met by a rapidly moving jet of steam and later by a shower of water, it is thus that all germs and bacteria are destroyed, and when the air leaves the apparatus it is in a purified condition, because of the intimate codust laden air.

The following is what I consider the best means of carrying out this invention.

The. accompanying drawing forms a part of this specification, in which:

Figure 1 is a central vertical section through the whole apparatus. Fig. 2 is a sectionat right angles to Fig. 1. It is on the line 22 and is viewed in the direction of the-arrow. Fig. 3. shows in section a substituted casing 1 containing a number of modifications. Fig. 4 is a view correspondmg to Fig. 1 though showing a case of somewhat diflterent dimensions.

Similar reference numerals indicate like parts in all the figures where they appear.

A casing, which may be iron, but which must be air and water tight is indicated at 1. The size of this casing must be determined by the efliciency desired in the cleaner or the amount of work which it is required to do. The case 1 is not unlike a box, the upper side of which is open and provided with the outwardly extending flange 2 complete on all four sides. .A cover 3, which may be secured in .place by a series of bolts 4, closes the upper open side of the box, and secured to the cover, though at one side of the center thereof, is a downwardly dependmg bafile plate 5, the lower end of which reaches a point a few inches above the inner bottom of the box, the use of this baflie will be described later.

What I will term the front of the box, the part indicated by 6, is provided with a cone or funnel shaped projection 7, which I have shown as formed integral with the side 6, but which may be formed of an independent member properly secured in an opening provided for its reception in the side 6. The outer end of the cone 7 is the smaller, and it is within thiscontracted end that I have se-.

cureda member, or a plurality of members consisting of the expansionv-alve '8, the induction chamber 9, and the steam nozzle 10.

The expansion nozzle 8, and the induction chamber 9, must be secured reliably together and means must be provided for securing the whole within the small and open end of the cone 7. I have shown them screwt-hreaded as indicated at 11, though I believe were care to be taken a tapered and pressed joint might serve equally well.

Directly opposite the inner end of the expansion nozzle, I locate my steam nozzle 10.

I may sometimes term this member a draft inducer, because of itspeculiar functions. The nozzle 10 is secured in the induction chamber by means of screw-threads 12.

A nipple 14 is fitted in a screw-threaded hole provided for it in the induction cham ber. It is to this nipple 14 that the flexible tube is to be attached, except in instances where the cleaning is tobe done at some distance from the cleaner, when the nipple 14 may be replaced by one or more lengths of pipp. The flexible tube and cleaning nozzle W1 then be secured to the end of the pipe.

Now referring once more to the box 1, 18 indicates a length of pipe extendi into the box from a point high up on one si e, and 19 indicates a sprayer nozzle secured to the down-turned end of the pipe 18. A supply of fresh water under moderate pressure should be connected to the pipe 18, and a liberal amount should be a lowed to flow through the nozzle 19 while the cleaner is in operation. Throu h the bottom of the box I pass a pipe 20, w ich may be connected to the sewer by means of a trap if desired, or any other means may be provided for carrying away the dust laden water which passes through the outlet 20. The upper end of the outlet pipe 20 should be behind the bailie plate 5, and must extend into the box to a point slightly above the lower end of the' baffle plate. A second pipe passing through the bottom of the box is indicated at 21, this is a wash out pipe to be used in carrying away any sediment that s does not escape through the pipe 20. The pipe 21 must also be connected to a desirable means for carrying away the waste water and so as not to interfere with the action of the pipe 20, the pipe 21 should be provided with a valve 22 which is kept closed except when washing out the sediment from the bottom of the box. I may provide additional means for admitting water to the box for the pur ose of cleaning. The pi 23, enterin the ox low down on one si e and provi ed with the valve 24, is the additional means for admitting water. I have found this very desirable for stirring up the ,sediment that has collected upon the bottom of the box, but this is not always necessary for the cover may be taken off and the sediment removed in that way.

In my experiments I have found that a certain back pressure, lowerin the efiiciency of my apparatus, is occasione by introducing into the box steam and water under pressure, and to overcome this objectionable condition I have inserted a short length of pipe 25, well up in one side of my box. I prefer that the pipe 25 shall be provided with a downward turn outside of the box and I prefer that the pipe shall enter the box behind the bafile plate 5, as I have found that best results can be obtained by this structure.

In operation, my device is not unlike the action of an inspirator and a jet condenser. Steam entering the induction chamber at a highvelocity through the nozzle 10, and allowed to suddenly expand in the valve 8, induces a positive and liberal inward draft through the nipple 14, and the cleaning tube and nozzle which may be connected thereto.

The steam and dust laden air being blown into'the' box, meets the falling water from the sprayer 19, the steam is condensed and the ust is deposited in the bottom of the box with the water, and flows away through the pipe 20. The air is now free to'flow away through the equalizing pipe 25.

Any means may be provided for supplying steam at a high velocity, though because of the small amount of steam required I propose to combine with my apparatus a small igh pressure boiler operating on the flash or other a proved principle.

In the gures I show a pipe 27 running obliquely from a point high up on one side near the back of the box to a oint low down on the same side but near, t e front of the box. The forward entrance of this 1pc should be near the water line and the eek or upper aperture should be behind the baflle plate 5.. This is also an equalizing pipe and may be used in conjunction with t e pipe 25 though I do not think that it will i zle 8, chamber 9 and steam inlet 10 may be used without the box 1 if a roper and satisfactory outlet be provided or the dust laden steam, this arrangement may be considered preferable for use on trains or steam shi s where the exhaust from the nozzle 8 may be discharged into the open air with no inconvenience.

If a casing 1, be used, it may be given any outline that is found convenient, or desirable, for the work which it is intended that it should do. In Fig. 4, I have shown a tubular chamber 1, and the water pipe 18 extends longitudinally in the chamber. The pipe used is not unhke the pi e shown in ig. 3, though its series of per orations extend completely around. A cone shaped member 30, through which the ipe 18 passes, and which may be consi ered as supporting the pipe 18, also serves another important function, because of its shape the water falling from the perforations 1n the pipe 18, disturb and wash away any sediment that may collect on the cone mem ber 30.

I have described the construction of my apparatus in a way that will result in producingamachinewell ada ted for the services for which it is inten ed, but modifications ma be made by a good mechanic and within t e scope of the appended claims without departing from the rinciple or sacrificing the advantages of th1s invention.

In Fi 3 I have shown a modified structure. T e sprayer nozzle in this instance is replaced by the pipe 26. The pipe is perforated by a large number of fine holes and arranged, as it is, adjacent to the bafiie 5, it

serves as a water curtain against which the dust laden steam is projected.

Having carefully and fully described my v invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is.

1. In a suction cleaner, a casing, an'expansion chamber formed in said casing, means for injecting and inducting fluids at a high velocity into said casing, and means within said casing for condensing one of the fluids and overcoming the pressure due to the high velocity.

2. In a device of the character described, a casing provided with a plurality of aperturesthrough its sides, a funnel shaped member formed integral with another side, an expansion nozzle secured in said funnel shaped member and a baflle plate suspended within said casing, means for admitting air and an expansible fluid through saidexpansion nozzle into said casing to be impinged upon said baflle plate, means for condensing said expansible fluid within said casing and a pipe entering through one of the apertures in said casing for carrying away the condensation.

3. The combination with a casing having a plurality of apertures, a cover, and a cone shaped projection from one side of said casing, an expansion nozzle, and a steam jet secured in the apex of said cone, a sprayer nozzle and a pipe therefor leading through another aperture, an equalizing pipe connected to another aperture, an overflow pipe connected to another aperture, and lnlet and outlet flush pipes connectedv to other apertures in said casing, and a baflie plate suspended from the cover, means for admitting water through the sprayer nozzle, means for admitting, air and steam through the ,expansion nozzle into the spray from said sprayer nozzle and against said baflle plate and means for ejecting air through said equalizing pipe and water through said overflow pipe as herein specified and for the ,purpose set forth.

4:. In a device of the character described, a casing having a vertical bafile arranged therein, means for injecting steam and air into said casing, and means for showering Water adjacent to said bafiie and between said bafile and said steam and air inlet for condensing the steam and purifying the air within said casing.

5. In a device of the character described, a chamber, provided with inlet and outlet passages, means for injecting air at a high velocity through said inlet passage, and a baffle arranged Within said chamber between said inlet and outlet passages protecting said outlet passage from the pressure of the inlet passage as specified.

6. A suction cleaner having a casing -provided with inlet and outlet passages, a baflie arranged. within said casing producing therein a plurality of chambers, means for injecting steam and inducting air into one of said chambers, and means for condensing the steam in one of said chambers, means for discharging the water of condensation from the other said chamber, and means for new tralizing the pressure of said steam within both chambers as specified.

Signed at New York city N. Y. this 25 day of February 1911;, in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN GEORGE WALKER.

Witnesses: I

G. E. STERRI'I'I'E, ARTHUR PHELPS MARK. 

